Performances

2017 Featured Performers & Demonstrations

Stage Hosting & Management

Robin Sunderland Host Diversity Stage

Armin Hasanagic Host Heritage Stage

Information on Performing

Katelyn Mason Host World Stage

Tuatha Dea

Celtic, tribal, Gypsy rock with an Appalachian steampunk edge. Tuatara Dea has been dubbed “The Eclectic Partridge Family in Kilts and Corsets” and “The Appalachian Fae”.

Roots of A Rebellion

A Reggae group playing heavy Reggae-Rock-Dub music for the soul. The band is known for their dynamic live shows showing their progressive sound and energy.

Rachana Pasupuleti

Rachana Pasupuleti was 8 years old when she began peforming at the Bowling Green International Festival in 2009. She has studied Bharatnatyam, a Classical form of Indian Dance since she was three years old.

Armin Hasanagic & Sasha Strunjas

A mix of traditional Bosnian sevdah songs as well as gypsy and folk music from the Balkin region. Instruments include guitar, prim, veillette and gryphone.

Pati Kele Drum Ensemble

Performing music and dance from West Africa, the group plays djembe/dundun along with flutes, xylophones, and additional percussion. Songs in West African languages with intricate drum breaks, masked dance and audience participation elements invite everyone to join the village drum and dance party!

Stirfry Musette

This band is a flavorful stirfry of music that spans Jazz, Americana, Eastern European, Latin and Folk.In recognition of artistic excellence, Stirfry Musette has been selected to participate in the Performing Arts Directory, a program of the Kentucky Arts Council.

San Rafael Band

The band’s style has best been described as Latin Jazz Fusion with a Salsa flare. The band has been performing International Festivals for 10+ years.

Barrenhart

Celtic Bluegrass by David Foster (Guitar) Greg Cutcliff (Bagpipes, Bass) Hazel Johnson (Mandolin).

Belize Dance Intermix

Live drum accompaniment paired with a music and dance style is uniquely Belizean, with dance technique deriving from the Garifuna and Creole cultures laced with Afro-caribbean movememts.

Cheryl Plan

“Woman of 1000 dances”, Cheryl Pan performs with her students. Pan has choreographed and directed many classic Chinese dances such as the Fan Dance, Ribbon Dance, Umbrella Dance, and Lantern Dance. In addition, over 20 styles of her ethnic dances representing Chinese minority groups such as Tibetan, Uyugurian, Mongolian, Yi, Bai and Miao, have been the highlighted at many cultural events

Mark Beagle of Strawberry Jam

Strawberry Jam honors the sacred Indian path of Bhakti yoga/kirtan with a tradition that is a call and response format using music/chanting as found in holy temples and street festivals of India.

United Zo organization of Kentucky

The local Zo community performs a dance of unity that was performed by whole tribes until midnight in celebration of a successful hunt.

Mel'Keta's Raghba & Alihat Al Sharq

Oriental belly dance featuring Egyptian styles including Raqs Sharqi, Beledi, and Saidi. Their dances showcase the elegance, beauty, and traditions of this middle eastern art form.

Cielito Lindo

Groups of local boys and girls performing Jalisco dance and other traditional hispanic dances.

BG Burmese Community

The Burmese, Karen, Karenni, and Zo Mi living in Bowling Green share traditional Burmese music and dance.

Manisha and Aanyaa Arora

Manisha and Aanyaa Arora’s dance depicts the fusion of Indian western dance and shows how the traditional form of Indian dance can be blended with western music.

Best of African Club

Speciose Nyiramana leads the group dancing to fast paced music in various African languages.

Robin Duckett

A single performer in the sean nos style of Irish music, an old traditional style of singing without accompaniment that is a highly ornamental type of singing.

Kentucky Grapplers

Martial arts of Malaysia and the Philippines.

Aramaru Martial Arts

Demonstrations of martial arts including forms, kicking, board breaking and weaponry.

Midori Kai

Our local Japanese community has been a part of the festival from the beginning. Each year representatives lead festival goers in a variety of traditional Japanese dances.

Dance Arts Performance Troupe

The troupe will represent the blending of African cultures and step dancing to create Hip Hop as well as a traditional Arabic cultural dance that has influences from Palestine, Syria and other Middle Eastern countries.

Coqui

A “one man band”, Coqui plays keyboards, sings and dances performing salsa, cumbia, merengue and other genres from Latin America.

Bhutanese Community

Nepali cultural dance

Ronnie Jaggers

Ronnie Jaggers, owner of Chiseled Features Studio has been a sculpture artist locally for more than thrity years. Ronnie has hosted pinata bursts every hour on the hour for children at the festival since 2001. Ronnie has pinatas, masks and Christmas ornaments as well as information on her painting classes and custom ornaments available at her Chiseled Features booth near the Pinata Burst area.

Stage Schedule

Diversity Stage [host: Robin Sunderland]
• 8:45 – 9:00 Opening Ceremony – Poster Contest Awards, Recognitions, Welcome.
• 9:15 – 10:15 San Rafael Band – Latin Jazz Fusion with a Salsa Flare
• 10:25 – 10:40 Rachana Pasupuleti – Classical Indian Dance
• 10:45 – 11:00 Dance Arts Performance Troupe – African & Arabic Dance Forms
• 11:05 – 11:35 Mel’Keta’s Raghba & Alihat Al Sharq – Egyptian Style Belly Dance
• 11:40 -12:10 Best of African Club – African Dance
• 12:15 – 12:30 KY Grapplers – Malaysia & Philipino Martial Arts
• 12:45 – 1:25 Stirfry Musette – Jazz, Eastern European, Latin, Folk
• 1:35 – 2:15 Pati Kele – Drums & Dance from W. Africa
• 2:30 – 3:30 Roots of a Rebellion – Heavy Reggae-Rock-Dub
• 3:40 – 4:05 Cielito Lindo – Jalisco & Traditional Hispanic Dance
4:10 – 4:40 Best of African Club – African Dance • 4:55 – 6:00 Tuatha Dea – Celtic, Tribal, Gypsy Rock

Heritage Stage [host: Armin Hasanagic]
• 9:00 – 9:45 Coqui – Salsa, Cumbia, Merengue
• 9:50 – 10:40 BG Burmese Community – Burmese, Karen, Karenni, and Zomi Traditional Dance
• 10:55 – 11:35 Stirfry Musette – Jazz, Americana, Eastern European, Latin & Folk
• 11:40 – 11:50 Manisha Arora – Fusion of Indian & Western Dance
• 12:00 – 12:40 Armin Hasanagic, Sasha Strunjas – Bosnian Sevdah Songs, Gypsy, Folk
• 12:45 – 1:05 Belize Dance Intermix – Garifuna & Creole with Afro-Caribbean Movememts
• 1:10 – 1:25 Rachana Pasupuleti – Classical Indian Dance
• 1:40 – 2:40 Tuatha Dea – Celtic, Tribal, Gypsy Rock
• 2:50 – 3:40 Cheryl Pan – Traditional Chinese Dance
• 3:50 – 4:20 Robin Duckett – Sean Nos Atyle Irish Music
• 4:30 – 5:00 Mark Beagle of Strawberry Jam – Bhakti yoga/Kirtan Music & Chanting
• 5:05 – 6:00 Armin Hasanagic, Sasha Strunjas – Bosnian Sevdah Songs, Gypsy, Folk

World Performance Area [Host Katelyn Mason]
• 9:00 – 9:30 Mark Beagle of Strawberry Jam – Bhakti Yoga/Kirtan Music & Chanting
• 9:35 – 9:50 Dance Arts Performance Troupe
• 9:55 – 10:15 Bhutanese Community – Traditional Dance of Bhutan
• 10:20 – 10:40 Belize Dance Intermix – Garifuna & Creole with Afro-Caribbean Movements
• 10:45 – 11:10 Cielito Lindo – Jalisco & Traditional Hispanic Dance
• 11:15 – 1:30 Zo United – Traditional Dance of Unity
• 11:45 – 12:25 San Rafael Band – Latin Jazz Fusion with a Salsa Flare
• 12:40 – 1:30 Barrenhart – Celtic Bluegrass
• 1:40 – 1:55 Dance Arts – African & Arabic Dance Forms
• 2:00 – 2:30 Mel’Keta’s Raghba & Alihat Al Sharq – Egyptian Style Belly Dance
• 2:35 – 3:35 BG Burmese Community – Burmese, Karen, Karenni, and Zomi Traditional Dance
• 3:45-4:35 Pati Kele – W. Africa Drums & Dance
• 4:45 – 5:00 Aramaru – Martial Arts
• 5:05 – 5:25 Cielito Lindo – Jalisco Hispanic Dance
• 5:30 – 6:00 Midori-Kai – Japanese Bon Dance

Chiseled Features Studio [Host Ronnie Jaggers]
Children are invited to bust handmade pinatas by Ronnie Jaggers of Chiseled Features Studios every hour on the hour.